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"GREAT SOCIAL SECURITY DEBATE" TO KICK OFF IN KANSAS CITY WITH PRESIDENT CLINTON

March 31, 1998

WASHINGTON -- President Clinton and members of Congress will kick off a
series of bipartisan forums designed to lay the foundation for Social
Security reform on April 7 in Kansas City, Mo. The event is being
cosponsored by the Concord Coalition and the AARP, in collaboration
with Americans Discuss Social Security, a project funded by the Pew
Charitable Trusts.

The "Great Social Security Debate" will take place from 11
a.m.-3 p.m. (CDT) in the Physical Education Building on the campus of
Penn Valley Community College in Kansas City. Penn Valley Community
College, one of the Metropolitan Community Colleges, is located at 3201
Southwest Trafficway.

The event will be broken into three sessions:

Session One (11 a.m.-12:10 p.m. CDT)

Defining the Problem: An overview of Social Security and the
challenges it faces early in the next century. Session will include
opening remarks from the President, bipartisan members of Congress, and
other dignitaries. Members of Congress participating in the event will
be Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.), Sen. Robert Kerrey (D-Neb.), Rep. Kenny
Hulshof (R-Mo.) and Rep. Earl Pomeroy (D-N.D.).

Session Two (12:25 p.m.-1:50 p.m. CDT)

Exploring Options for Change: Session will include a
discussion of the various reform options available to prepare Social
Security for the 21st Century and a conversation with the audience
about the personal and social values that should be the foundation of
any change.

A panel of experts will discuss the pros and cons of proposals ranging
from raising the age of retirement to creating private savings
accounts.

The panel will include Fred Goldberg, former executive director of the
Kerrey-Danforth Entitlement Commission; Marilyn Moon, senior fellow at
the Urban Institute and a public trustee of the Social Security and
Medicare trust funds; David Walker, former public trustee of the Social
Security and Medicare trust funds; and Gary Burtless, senior fellow in
economic studies, the Brookings Institution.

Session Three (2:10 p.m.-3 p.m. CDT)

Audience Conversation: President Clinton, members of
Congress and other forum participants will conduct an interactive
conversation with members of the forum audience. During this
conversation, members of the audience will be encouraged to state their
views about the current Social Security system, and ask questions about
the available options for reform.

The purpose of the Great Social Security Debate is to bring a
greater number of Americans into discussions about Social Security
reform, to increase the level of public understanding of the program
and the magnitude of the fiscal challenges it faces, to emphasize the
importance of acting on reform sooner rather than later, and to lay a
foundation for reforms that will make the program sustainable.

Media organizations that would like to send representatives to
the event should fax a request, including the name, title, date of
birth, and social security number of attendants to the following
number: 816-561-3107. Information on when and where media credentials
can be picked up will be available soon. A valid photo and press id
will be needed to pick up media credentials.

For further information about the Great Social Security Debate,
please contact Lisa Davis of the AARP at (202) 434-2560 or Jamie Ridge
of the Concord Coalition at (202) 467-6222.